During a 28-day frenzy on the sandstone walls of Wadi Rum, in January and February 2023, Alberto Luque and Albert Segura (both from Spain) established seven new multi-pitch climbs from 6b to 8a. It was a particularly meaningful trip for Segura, who was on the rebound from chemotherapy for a tumor and who’d had to curtail his guiding work for six months during treatment.

Their standout climb was Zion, a 12-pitch 8a up an eye-catching buttress on the west side of the Jebel Rum massif, with its crux on pitch ten. Segura had learned of the potential on the west face from French climber Arnaud Petit, and when they showed a photo of it to their local guide, Atayek Hamad, he took them there the next day.

This objective took four days to complete, leaving the climbers with time and bolts to spare. (The climbers used bolts sparingly on their routes—there
are only 20 protection bolts on Zion’s 12 pitches, for example, plus bolted anchors.) Taking only 1.5 rest days on their trip, the duo put up six more climbs ranging from 6b to 7b, and from 130m to 450m. Four of these were in the remote area of Jebel Suwebit, south of Rum, near the border with Saudi Arabia.

The team’s new routes are listed below:

Zion (450m, 8a), west face of Jebel Rum
Shehana (160m, 6b), north face of Jebel Abu Braisheimana
El Petaquintos (330m, 6c), east face of Jebel Barrah
The Jordan Pass (450m, 6c+), west face of the Khoram Jreish Crag (Jebel Suwebit)
Insha'Allah (365m, 7b), north face of the Khoram Jreish Crag (Jebel Suwebit)
Nightmares on the Sand (450m, 7b), north face of the Khoram Jreish Crag (Jebel Suwebit)
Amina (130m, 7b), north face of the Khoram Jreish Crag (Jebel Suwebit)

— Matt Samet, AAJ, with information from Desnivel and Albert Segura